Farmers Urged to Venture Into Wildlife Farming

The Herald (Harare)

February 14, 2005
Posted to the web February 15, 2005

New Ziana
Harare

THE Parks and Wildlife Management Authority has urged farmers to venture into wildlife farming to generate foreign currency for the county.

The authority's public relations manager, Mr Edward Mbewe, told New Ziana on Friday that wildlife farming was the most profitable enterprise at the moment despite current economic hardships.

"On medium-sized to large properties, sport hunting has contributed significantly to foreign currency inflows in the country," he said.

He said apart from sport hunting, income could also be generated from meat sales, photographic safaris, game viewing, canoeing, fishing and accommodation charges among others. "With proper management and good stocking, wildlife business can be much more than a bumper harvest," he said.

Mr Mbewe said a farmer could venture into wildlife farming with a minimum of 500 hectares as long as the selection of the species does not strain the environment.

The type of species, the number of animals kept and the size of the property, he said, determined the amount of profit a farmer could accrue.

He said apart from profit-making, a farmer could derive satisfaction from the sight of healthy and abundant wildlife hence contributing towards conserving the country's natural fauna.

However, he said there was need for basic knowledge on the type of species, feeding behaviour, territoriality, carrying and stocking rates.

Mr Mbewe said wildlife farming could be combined with crop production if space was not a constraint.


He said the authority could supply animals to farmers interested as a way of reducing population to lessen habitat destruction.

Wildlife farming is characterised by the manipulation of the ecosystem by man as it involves fence construction, supplementary feeding, tick control, chemical treatment of animals, moribund control through burning, provision of suitable areas of water and application of pesticides.

What was it called before the vets took over the farms, killed some of the owners, killed ALL the wildlife, and cut down all the trees?

quote:

Originally posted by Will:
What was it called before the vets took over the farms, killed some of the owners, killed ALL the wildlife, and cut down all the trees?

"White colonial foreign exploitation of the environment and masses."

In the current climate one would need their head read to even consider what that joker has to say. IN fact it sounds nice and rosy, spend all your hard earned money set up a nice property and BINGO the MUGABE henchmen swines have a gold mine at their finger tips to poach steal and appropriate as they choose ...

I was born and raised in that country and dont miss a trick, of cource some will be conned no doubt BUT as I said before, there is a fool born every day ...

Now having been so cynical and rude I must say that basically game farming is the way to go PROVIDED the situation in conducive to investment. In South Africa this was in fact DONE very successfully with over 9000 game farms to boot ...

Peter

Peter

Th article was by the Herald. No matter if the article has no resemblance to reality from that newspaper (gov't mouthpiece)